The Inevitable Conversation
by rebeck
Summary: ...in which Don tells Jamie about his former girlfriend, Jess.


Detective Don Flack leaned back against the fabric of the booth, stretching his long limbs as he waited for his date to return. He had let her choose the restaurant, and she'd chosen a little hole in the wall that had managed to pass under his radar until now. The menu had proved impressive, as well as the service and drink selections. He'd ordered his favourite beer, a Canadian draft that not every bar had in stock.

Flack heard the sound of clicking heels behind him and turned to see Jamie. The smile that formed on his face was like a reflex, he couldn't even stop himself anymore. She was simply fun to be around and he found himself wanting to spend more and more time with her. It had been awhile since he'd known a girl like her.

"I hope you didn't eat any of my cheesecake while I was gone," Jamie stated with a grin.

"I would never!" Don protested. "I'm stuffed from the black forest cake. I didn't even touch it."

"Yeah right, you're always hungry. Me thinks you protest too much," Jamie retorted. "You can help me finish it though. I for one am getting full."

"Well, I won't say no to that," Don replied as he stuck his fork into the strawberry dessert.

For a moment, they sat in silence as they savoured the flavour and chewed the dessert. This was their second date, a little more formal than their first date at the ping-pong bar, and he was pleased with how it was going. He couldn't remember the last time he had taken a girl out to a restaurant. In fact, the last time could have been with Jess, he thought.

He hadn't told Jamie about Jess. It wasn't a topic that came up in conversation easily, and to this day he still found it hard to talk about. But he knew that he couldn't put it off any longer. His hope was that this relationship with Jamie would last for awhile, and that meant that he needed to be honest with her.

"Hello? Earth to Don. What are you thinking about?" Jamie asked with a laugh.

Quickly he snapped back to reality, not realizing how much time had passed. She'd finished the cheesecake, if that was any sign.

"Uh, I was thinking that, there's something I should tell you."

"Oh yeah? Do tell."

"Okay. Well, I probably should have told you about this earlier, but, I never knew how to bring it up. So I'll just get it out there: I dated a woman a few years ago, and she was my partner, and she died." He exhaled audibly, feeling as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

"Her name was Jess, wasn't it?" Jamie asked quietly.

Don was taken aback, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion. How had she known? He'd never mentioned it before, had he?

Jamie noticed his surprise. "One of the guys told me back in October, shortly after I started. I never brought it up, because I thought that was up to you, if you wanted to talk about it or not."

He nodded, but said nothing. There was much to say, but he'd never been good at having this discussion and it had never gotten easier. Where even to start?

Thankfully, Jamie knew what to say better than him. "What was Jess like?"

"Jess was, uh, Jess was awesome. She was, she was kind, and funny, and feisty. She didn't take shit from anybody and she was a great partner." Somehow, Jamie was making this easy, almost relaxing, or cathartic. "We only dated for 9 months, but I kind of thought that maybe we'd never stop dating, and that maybe I'd marry her someday."

Don paused for a second, realizing what he'd just said. Here he was, on a date with a wonderful woman and he was telling her that he'd thought he might marry someone else? That wasn't what you say to a person on the second date.

But instead, Jamie nodded and smiled. "She seems like someone I would have liked."

"I think you would have liked her a lot," Don said, feeling his voice catch a little. Even now, nearly 4 years later, talking about Jess still managed to do this to him.

"Thanks for telling me about her. Maybe some time, you can show me pictures of her. I've only seen the one in the squad room."

"Yeah, I'd like that."

"So, are you paying this bill, or am I?" She smiled at the waiter who had suddenly appeared at their table, indicating that the restaurant was closing shortly. Where had the evening gone?

Don grinned and handed his credit card to the waiter. "I guess you're worth it," he replied.


End file.
